(SWITZ CITY) – Last night, just after 9 p.m., a one passenger aircraft suffered engine failure at approximately 2000 feet in Greene County.
The engine failure caused an unplanned “dead-stick” landing near County Road 600 West. A dead-stick landing is a type of forced landing when an aircraft loses all of its propulsive power and is forced to land.
Immediately upon touchdown, the aircraft bounced over the roadway before plunging the 2010 Quad City Challenger into a ditch on the opposite side causing the ultralight to invert, severely damaging the airframe and injuring the sole occupant.
The pilot, 52-year-old Robert L Millsaps, of Coal City, suffered fractures and possible head injuries, all of which were thought to be non-life threatening. Millsaps was transported by ambulance to Terre Haute Regional Hospital for treatment.
Indiana State Police Troopers Samuel Wagner and Richard Klun along with the FAA, continue to investigate the crash.
The Greene County Sheriff’s Department assisted at the scene.
